UAE deports man for sending sexually abusive messages to journalist

KARACHI: A firm in the United Arab Emirates fired its employee for abusing journalist Rana Ayyub on social media and posting derogatory content against Islam.

According to media reports, the expat from Kerala, Bincy Lal, on Facebook messenger abused Rana Ayyub. Taking screenshots of these messages, Ayyub posted them on Twitter last week, triggering a wave of angered responses on social media.

Her tweet expectedly sparked outrage all over social media, however, to Ayyub`s surprise, when the matter reached Lal’s employers, Alpha Paint – a Sharjah-based firm, the administration ordered a probe against him, and ultimately found out that the allegations were indeed true.

Speaking to a news publication, Alpha Paint’s HR manager informed: “When we checked on his Facebook account, we saw the abusive message which was sent to that lady in addition to offensive posts against Islam,” further adding, “”We verified the accuracy of the information and checked on the name of the man. On April 8, at 8 am the termination order of (B.B.) was issued.

She later said on Twitter that the man’s visa had been revoked and that he would be deported back to India.

Ayyub plans to file a FIR in Delhi on Tuesday. “He could do this at his workplace tomorrow if he doesn’t like someone. This is a lesson for even others who write such messages,” Gulf News quoted her as saying.

She is well known in India and abroad for her book about the 2002 Gujarat riots, Gujarat Files : Anatomy of a Cover Up. Her publication led to the brief arrest of BJP President Amit Shah – considered being a close associate of Indian Prime Minister Narendar Modi.